When It Rains, It Snows...

 

Hi!

It's the end of March in Canada, rain in the morning, snow in the afternoon. Hey, at least it's not happening in July!

Well, we're here.

Another National Election.

For a lot of us, the choice is clear, but for some, unfathomably, it's not.

Let's take a long hard look at the direction we want our country to take. 

Right now, it's basically this.

Do you want to become the 51st state or remain an awesome, sovereign Country?

This, by the way, should be a no-brainer.

If you believe that Canada should be like the US, by all means, you should live where you believe you would be happiest. But the rest of us love Canada, love being Canadian, flaws and all.

We are a uniquely kind and diverse Country with a deep understanding that our diversity is our greatest strength.

We know that we are a Country of uninvited immigrants, with a messy history not without its dark corners that need light shed upon them. 

We know we aren't perfect.

We know we are a country that moves forward, and thinks ahead. 

We appreciate the importance of, and strive for equity. We are not there yet, but we are working toward this most noble goal.

We know that stripping rights is backward thinking and leads to repeating the very history that gave birth to the dark corners we are trying to light.

We know that absolutely everyone needs to share the same freedoms. Everyone. And, yes, all of them. 

We know that human dignity should be a given, without caveat.

We know that adult people, and people supported by the adults that care for them, should be able to change their names, appearances, religions, locations, marital status (adults only, on this one) and anything else that is personal to them without interference from anybody else. It's called minding your business. 

We know we need to protect children. Really protect them. Protect their right to be who they know they are. Protect them from actual predators, not the imaginary ones homophobes fantasize about. (Child porn, sexual abuse, and assault on children remain overwhelmingly, statically, perpetuated by straight men) We need to protect them from hunger, poverty, and make sure every single one has a warm, soft, safe place to fall. 

We know sexual orientation and gender are not a choice. We are hardwired to be who we are. We each discover how that comes through us along the way. I didn't choose to be a straight woman, I just am. Our body parts dictate nothing. It's science... just look it up already. (The National Library of Science, and Science Direct are good places to start) Fun Fact: Drag Queens, pride parades and rainbow flags, are NOT factors.

We know that what we have to learn from those who are different from us is an incredible gift. Shared culture is how the world progresses. 

We know science is real. Peer-reviewed, scrutinized, challenged, and repeatedly tested facts are just that... facts. The rules of physics are a great example. 

We know that bad actors have already penetrated our social media feeds with misinformation. It's being spread without substantiating sources, AI photos, clickbait headlines... critical thinking is sooooo important. Please dig before you spread.

We need to be united against this.... whatever it is that Bloated Cheeto south of THE BORDER thinks he's doing. His tough guy cosplay is getting old, the world over. 

We know we need leaders that are going to stand up against this insanity and not try to copy it. We need people who aren't afraid to speak his name. We need people who don't use taxpayers' dollars to visit him at his pretend palace.

We know we want our great-grandbabies, when they grow up, to love who they want, marry who they want, wearing what they want. We want them to be free to be who they are as they discover the breadth of who they want to become. We want them to be able to breathe in our air, swim in our lakes, drink our water, and walk on our sand, land, mud and snow, without worry.

We know we need to stretch our ingenuity to build sustainable sources of energy for generations to come.

We know we need to prioritize health and education to ensure those who come after us have the tools they need to thrive. 

We know we are only as strong as our most vulnerable. There will always be those more vulnerable, but as equity and equality become... well, become prevalent enough that we can have the luxury of taking it for granted, there will be fewer to combat, once and for all eliminating the vulnerabilities created by our own society. 

We know what we need to do.

We got this.

Elbows Up. 

When The Horizon Seems Dark...

 Hi!

When what's on the horizon seems dark and uncertain, sometimes it's good to take a step back and get a broader perspective. Maybe ask a few questions that, ten years ago, would have seemed idiotic.

Things might not look much better, but every little bit helps... right?

Like, for instance...

Why are elected officials, and others on the people's payroll immediately south of the 49th, trying to string together a go-fund-me for one of, if not thee richest man in the world?

Why is this money-hoarding, attention-seeking, deadbeat dad, goose-stepper, who has stated many times that empathy is a virus, now begging for empathy?

Why do the willfully misinformed insist on staying that way?

Why can't there be a new reality gameshow, the "Almost Amazing Race," where flat-earthers race to the edge, and pit stops would include places like where they filmed the faked moon landing, Bigfoot's den, and the fishing shack where Elvis and JFK Jr. hang out?

Why aren't the people responsible for gutting the FAA and firing air traffic controllers forced to fly using commercial airlines?

Why would anyone want to sabotage the education of the future leaders of their own country?

Why can't some people fathom that not all intelligent children with natural aptitudes for leadership are born into privilege?

How did publicly funded police become a Tesla personal security team?

On what planet is it at all surprising that sovereign countries, threatened by bully morons, retaliate?

How can a 78-year-old not understand that countries aren't simply parcels of real estate? I mean, I know he doesn't have the intelligence of a half-dead goldfish, but... really?

Can critical thinking be taught?

Why is the Bloated Cheeto cult hosting infomercials on TrumpTV, trying to sell $100,000, dangerously problem-riddled "vehicles" to people who are struggling to afford basic breakfast ingredients?

Whatever happened to the caravans of evil immigrants of 2020, or the ones that wanted to chef up a Pet Cemetery buffet in 2024? Did they go the way of the boogeymen of yore?

What are all these super-rich people always so mad about?

Why are they so scared of everybody and that doesn't look exactly like them?

Why is the word "equality" so terrifying?

Do they really think that banning words, books, and pictures actually changes history?

How are some of these people so rich, and plagued with such incompetent idiocy at the same time?

Well, I think that's most of my questions, for now.

I'm sure there will be more... every... single... day,  now that the insanity circus is in full swing.

We'll get through this.

Elbows Up!

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Elbows Up!...

 Hi!

I just don't get it.

On what planet of some alternate, multi-verse, twilight-zone situation does the Bloated Orange live on?

I get that he's old, and that he has some definite progressive, cognitive degeneration speeding right along, but that was happening long before the IDIOTS (Intellectually Deficient Insipid Toddlers Society) put him back behind the big boy desk that used to be a serious place. 

I get that he has some special needs as far as he can't seem to muster the ability to comprehend anything more complicated than "person, woman, man, camera, tv." (Assuming he could still manage to do that... I mean that was several years ago, right?)

I get that he simply doesn't understand that, although governments don't and shouldn't be run like businesses, they definitely should NOT be run into the ground like the many businesses he either bankrupted or had to shut down due to all the frauding and whatnot. I mean even a Casino! People without high school educations built Vegas from scratch and made it a huge success! Sure there is rumoured lore as to the origins of the money that bankrolled it all, but..... I mean, maybe the Bloated Orange's backers' surnames are spelled with the Cyrillic instead of Roman alphabet... but still...

I get that he can't wrap his swiss-cheesed brain around the fact that countries outside of the US are just as sovereign, just as free, and have all the same rights that the US has to stay that way.

I get that he thinks he can bully his way across the world, betraying alliances, making idiotic demands,  fully expecting everyone to simply bow down and kiss the ring. 

I know that he has absolutely no understanding of actual, factual history.

I know he believes that if he just repeats the lies and demands loud enough and often enough, that if he kicks up a big enough stink, the world will crumble at his feet and submit. He believes it, because up to now, it has worked. But, up to now, he has only been dealing with people afraid of him, people who are intimidated.

The world, as a collective, wears very few red hats with misguided logos. 

The complete and utter disrespect. The dismissive verbiage. The absolute lack of foresight.

A toddler in desperate need of a nap, having been told that their favourite cup is broken, and they've just eaten the last of the yogurt.

I get all of that. Sadly, in the last ten years. the learning of this imbecile has been unavoidable. 

What I don't get, is everybody else. 

The placating, the boot-licking, the back-bending gymnastics, the soul-selling, the capitulating, the fear of him, the willingness to trash what you stand for... for... him. 

The news pretending that he and his minions have valid points.. about... anything, really. Trying to make cases for the fiction that up is really down, that the sky is green and the grass is blue, that the world might just be flat, that rain isn't wet, that what we are witnessing isn't, somehow, what we are witnessing.

That we don't recognize an evil salute when we see it. That we can't see what gutting the nuts and bolts of the day-to-day operations of agencies that provide money for veterans and pensioners will do when it comes to processing checks or answering phones. 

They wish their citizens to pay attention to the dog and pony show of teslas in the driveway, instead of the dismantling of the best parts of where you live, and who you are.

He, along with those who prop him up, is destroying your friendships and relationships around the world, ripping away your safety nets, and causing you unnecessary financial hardships, for absolutely no reason other than ego and their own personal greed. 

I don't get it. He's old. He's sick. The sun is going down on his time left on this earth... and this is how he is choosing to spend his golden years? Does he actually think he can take it all with him? I wouldn't put it past him. 

I don't get what makes him, and people like him tick. Making it their mission in life to hurt as many people as possible. Trying to make groups of people fear and hate each other. Creating and spreading devastating misery wherever and whenever possible. Accumulate... above all else... accumulate, without bounds, unfettered by integrity... accumulate.

The world is not for sale or for the taking just because you'd like to believe it is. 

So go ahead and have your tantrums, stamp your feet, scream and bellow, pout, do what you gotta do... 

We're still going to be Canada, Greenland will still be Greenland, the Panama Canal will remain the Panama Canal, and, yes, the Gulf of Mexico will still be the Gulf of Mexico long after you are gone. 

Redrawing maps with a sharpie didn't work during hurricane season any more than it will now. 

At some point somebody is going to have sit him down and tell him the truth, you know, have the big boy talk. 

Reality isn't going to bend to fit his fantasy.

Sorry. 

Elbows Up! 

 

  

59....Here I Come!

 

Hi!

And yes, these photos are here to remind those of us who live amongst snowbanks for a good chunk of the year that they WILL go away... eventually!

That's why Groundhog Day is kind of a joke around here. We would be absolutely stoked if winter ONLY lasted 6 weeks past Feb. 2nd! That would be fantastic! That would mean we would be snowless in about a week from now..... yeah.... not gonna happen. Not even close.

Anywayyyyyy.....

So, I turned 59 this week! 

Most of the time I have to stop and do the math to remind myself of my age. Sometimes, I feel every second of the 59 years. Always, I'm forever grateful for the chance to grow older.,for there are far too many who are robbed of the privilege. 

From a lifetime of physical labour, my body has had to endure more wear and tear than the average Gen X Grandma. The years of heavy lifting, long hours on concrete floors, having four babies in 41/2 years, waiting tables, running dayhome, cleaning commercial buildings, cleaning hotel rooms, all kinds of work-related injuries, and all that was part of growing up on a farm in the 70's and 80's... yeah, it's all present and accounted for.

Because of all of this, the knees aren't great, the hips don't lie, but they swear at me now and again, Arthiritis has begun to whisper sweet nothings into my hands, my shins like to scream at me every so often, and I'm slowly becoming a human barometer. 

I know for a fact, I am far from alone. There are more people who make their way through life putting their bodies through things they shouldn't in order to make a living than there are those who don't.

Don't get me wrong, if I would have had to ride a desk chair 40 hours a week for the last 40 years, I would have been miserable. I'd probably be able to kneel on the floor to look for something that rolled under the fridge without crying, but I would have been miserable.

Thankfully, some are built for desk jockey jobs, and some are not. The world couldn't survive without both being present. 

The thing is, historically, the jobs that break our bodies have always paid less than. They are equally important, and though they may not require as much formal education, they do require intelligence and an ability to acquire new skills, sometimes an entirely new skillset, as employment shifts, promotions are gained, or a complete shift in career is needed.

Society would like us to believe that people who live paycheck to paycheck just mismanage their money. That somehow if they would just work a little harder, or give up things they don't need, that they would be fine.

The thing is, people shouldn't have to work two or three jobs just so they can eat AND have power. 

We are supposed to be able to work to make a living. "Living" being the operative word.

We shouldn't have to spend every waking hour working or trying to think of ways to work more and still have more month at the end of the money than money at the end of the month.

Everyone should be able to afford a little joy, a little fun, a bit of a holiday now and again. 40 hours a week should make that possible.

The average income in Canada in 1980 was about $41,348.

The average income in Canada in 2021 was about $68,400.

So Joe and Joann Average got a raise of about 1.66% over 41 years.

The average monthly rent in Canada in 1980 was about $243.00.  That's about 7.5% of the income.

The average monthly rent in Canada in 2021 was about $1752.00. That's about 30.5% of the income.

If you factor in the disproportionate rise in other costs of living, such as utilities, groceries and owning a vehicle, let alone, I don't know, going to a movie, it doesn't take a genius to figure out why Millenials, and Gen Z's are getting burnt out before they even get started.

The idea of owning a home is out of reach for most. Hell, the idea of living without roommates feels like a pipedream. 

There isn't a person on the planet who wants to live on a hamster wheel, where they will simply run until they die. For a lot of young people right now, that's what it feels like.

Getting a degree guarantees only a lifetime of student loans, but not necessarily the promised career that will bring actual prosperity. 

When you ask little kids what they want to be when they grow up, anything short of being a superhero or a unicorn should be possible.

We need to find a way to make our kids' dreams possible again.

The status quo isn't sustainable. We need these next generations to run things when we are too old. They can't do it if they are burnt out by age 40 from working three jobs just to live on ramen, with 3 roommates, and little else to motivate them but the panic and anxiety that constantly living in survival mode provides. 

So yeah, these knees may have seen better days, but they still get me where I need to go. My wish for those that come after me is to have it a little easier. To be allowed to make a life, not just a living. To make enough money as to free up time to enjoy the life they are working for.

Not wanting to work all the damn time doesn't mean you are lazy. It means you're human. 

Comfort and financial stability should be for everyone, not just the few. 

Not having to worry how to cover next month's bills is what most dream about. 

That's it. It's that simple.

So, 59 here I come! Let's do what we can to lighten the load of those who will follow. 

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